Tip assembly for syringes

ABSTRACT

A tip assembly for a syringe wherein the assembly includes a cylindrical main body having an open forward end and a partially closed back end. The inner surface of the main body adjacent the back end has an annular seal. An inner cylindrical body is positioned within and coaxial with the main body forwardly of the annular seal. A flange-like member connects the inner body to the main body to retain the inner body in spaced relation within the main body. A cap is provided for closing the open end of the main body. A needle assembly is supported by the inner body within the main body. This needle assembly has a hub with a hole extending therethrough. A needle is held in the forward portion of the hub and a portion of the hub rearwardly of the needle is sized to fit in the inner body to position the needle assembly within the main body.

United States Patent 1191 Dovey et a1.

[ TIP ASSEMBLY FOR SYRINGES [75] inventors: Brian H. Dovey, Rockville,Md; Elliot Bartner, Piscataway, N..l.; Sheldon Kaplan, Potomac; Stanley,1. Sarnoff, Bethesda. both of Md.

[73] Assignee: Survival Technology. lnc., Bethesda,

22 Filed: Jan. 2, 1974 21 Appl. No.: 429,850

[52] US. Cl. 128/215; 206/365; 128/221 [51] Int. Cl A61m 5/32 [58] FieldofSearch 128/215,216, 221,218 N,

128/218 R, 272, 214 R, 214.2, 218 M, 218 F; 206/364-366, 438

[ 1 June 17, 1975 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 924,734 5/1963 UnitedKingdom 2 128/215 Primary E raminerRichard A. Gaudet AssistantExaminer-.l. C. McGowan Attorney, Agent. or Firm-Witherspoon and Lane 11 ABSTRACT A tip assembly for a syringe wherein the assembly includes acylindrical main body having an open forward end and a partially closedback end. The inner surface of the main body adjacent the back end hasan annular seal. An inner cylindrical body is positioned within andcoaxial with the main body forwardly of the annular sea]. A flange-likemember connects the inner body to the main body to retain the inner bodyin spaced relation within the main body. A cap is provided for closingthe open end of the main body. A needle assembly is supported by theinner body within the main body. This needle assembly has a hub with ahole extending therethrough, A needle is held in the forward portion ofthe hub and a portion of the hub rearwardly of the needle is sized tofit in the inner body to position the needle assembly within the mainbody.

2 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures PATENTEDJUN 1 7 m5 SHEET im ow mm Eu 0% mmTIP ASSEMBLY FOR SYRINGES SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This inventionrelates to apparatus in the syringe field and, more particularly, to atip assembly for use in conjunction with a syringe.

In this age of specialization in the medical field, it is imperativethat some action be taken to cut down the high number of componentrequirements, particularly with regard to syringes and relatedapparatus. It is with this in mind that the present tip assembly hasbeen developed.

In view of the foregoing, it is an object of this invention to provide atip assembly for syringes which has great adaptability both with regardto the syringes on which it is used and to the use to which the syringesare put.

It is yet another object of this invention to provide a tip assemblywhich will provide safer means for storage ofthe syringe with insertedcannula, ready for use upon removal of the cap or cap and body dependingupon the use prescribed.

The above and additional objects and advantages will become moreapparent when taken in conjunction with the following detaileddescription and drawings.

IN THE DRAWINGS FIG. I is a plan view partly in section illustrating thetip assembly and its attachment to a syringe,

FIG. 2 is a view showing the use of the tip assembly with a flexibledispensing bag, and

FIG. 3 is a view depicting the use of the tip assembly wherein the capand main body have been removed and the needle has been introduced intoa bottle of medicament.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION As best illustrated in FIG. 1, the tip assemblycomprises a cylindrical main body 12 having an open forward end I4 and apartly closed back end 16. The inner surface I8 of the main body 12 isprovided with a pair of axially spaced annular sealing rings adjacentthe back end I6. An integral cylindrical inner body 22 is coaxiallypositioned within the main body 12 forwardly of the sealing rings 20.This inner body 22 is attached to the main body I2 by means of aflangelike member 24 extending inwardly from the inner surface 18 of themain body 12. The outer surface 26 of the inner body 22 is equidistantfrom the inner surface 18 of the main body. The inner surface 28 of theinner body 22 is hexagonal in cross section for cooperation with theneedle hub as will be described later.

Referring to FIGS. I and 2, the inner surface 18 of the main body I2 isprovided with a retaining groove 34 adjacent the forward end of saidbody. A cap 36 fits into the open forward end I4 and is provided withlocking ring 38 on its outer cylindrical surface for engagement with theretaining ring 34 to hold the cap in position on the main body. Inaddition, the cap 36 is provided with a plurality of longitudinallyextending spacing bars 40 equispaced around the outer surface 42 of thecap 36. The length of the spacing bars 40 is such that the end oppositeof the cap head 44 will abut the front extremity 45 of the main body 12.

A needle assembly 48 is carried by the inner body 22 with the hexagonalportion 50 ofthe needle hub 52 fitting into the hexagonal opening 28 inthe inner body 22. More specifically, the needle hub 52 comprises anenlarged rear portion 54, a hexagonally shaped midportion 50 and aforward portion 56 having a diameter smaller than that of the mid orrear portion 50 and 54., respectively. The hub 52 is provided with alongitudinal throughbore into which needle 60 is introduced at theforward hub end. The needle is conventionally held in the hub byswaging, however, any other suitable means may be used for the purposeof fastening the needle to the hub in an operational manner. The lengthof the needle 60 is such that a portion of same extends out wardlybeyond the open end 14 of the main body 12. The rear enlarged hubportion 54 is formed with an upstanding outward lip 64 on its open endwhile the inner surface 66 of the rear hub portion 54 is provided withthe conventional Luer taper.

The tip assembly of this invention can be used with a large capacitysyringe of the type disclosed in pending application Ser. No. 40l,272.filed Sept. 27, I973. in the names of Elliot Bartner, Edward M. Curley.She]- don Kaplan and Stanley J. Sarnoff.

The tip assembly 10 is received by the syringe barrel 70 in thefollowing manner. The tip assembly mounting arrangement comprises athreaded body portion 72 threadedly carried in an appropriately threadedportion 74 of the syringe barrel 70. A horizontal hexagonally shapedportion 76 extends outwardly from the threaded body portion 72 forwrench use when assemblying the unit. An outer sleeve 78 projectsforwardly from the horizontal portion 76 and has its inner surface 80formed with conventional Luer-Lek threads 82. An inner sleeve extendsforwardly from the body 81 coaxially within the outer sleeve 78. Theouter surface 92 of the inner surface 90 is provided with the usual Luertaper to cooperate with the Luer taper of inner surface 66 of the needlehub rear portion 54.

In applying the tip assembly 10 of this invention to the syringe unitdisclosed in FIG. 1 and more fully covered in copending application Ser.No. 401,272, filed Sept. 27, I973, the tip assembly is slipped onto thesyringe body passing the sealing rings 20 of the main body 12 over theouter sleeve 78 and simultaneously causing the hub flange 64 to engagethe Luer Lok threads 82 and the tapered outer surface 92 of inner sleeve90 to snugly engage the inner tapered surface 66 of the rear hub portion54. Thus the syringe unit complete with re movable tip assembly is readyfor use.

One of the conventional uses of a syringe unit such as this is inintravenous apparatus and, more particularly, wherein it is desired toadd a medicament to the receptacle from which the liquid is beingdispensed. One form of such receptacle is a flexible bag having aplurality of nipple connections extending therefrom which are adapted toaccommodate con entional connecting devices.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the cap 36 has been removed from the tipassembly I0 and the needle 60 has been introduced into and throughflexible stopper carried on the bag nipple 102.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the cap 36 and main body 12 with integralinner body 22 have been removed from the tip assembly 10 so that thelong shank of the needle 60 is available for insertion in various typesof medicament containing units 110. As shown, the needle 60 is passedthrough a flexible stopper 112 to reach the medicament 114.

As might be expected, the body of the tip assembly can mostadvantageously be made from a plastic material. The cannula and hubshould be made from con ventional materials which are well known to theart. Adaptability and versatility of cannula size with regard todifferent types of syringes make the tip assembly aforedescribed a veryuseful and necessary piece of apparatus.

We claim:

1. A tip assembly comprising:

a cylindrical main body, said main body having an open forward end and apartially closed back end, the inner surface of the main body adjacentthe back end having a pair of spaced annular sealing rings extendinginwardly therefrom,

an inner body positioned within the main body for wardly of the sealingrings, the outer surface of the inner body being equispaced from theinner surface of the main body, the inner surface of the inner bodybeing hexagonal, means connecting the inner body to the main body andretaining same in the aforesaid spaced relation,

the forward end of the main body being provided with a retaining groove,

a cap fitting over the open end of the main body, said cap having acup-shaped configuration including a bottom and a cylindrical wallextending therefrom, holding means on the outer surface of the cap wallto engage the retaining groove in the main body, a plurality of spacingbars on the outer surface of the cap wall generally perpendicular to thecap bottom, the length of said spacing bars being such that they abutthe forward edge of the main body when the cap is positioned on the mainbody and the holding means are seated in the retaining groove, and

a needle assembly carried within the main body by the inner body, saidneedle assembly comprising a hub member having an enlarged rear portion,a hexagonally shaped middle portion and a forward portion having a crosssection smaller than the middle portion, the hub having a hole extendingcompletely therethrough, a needle positioned in the forward portion ofthe hub and held therein by the swaging of said hub portion into firmengagement with the needle, the hexagonal middle portion of the hubbeing sized to snugly fit into the hexagonal inner surface of the innerbody whereby the needle assembly is firmly held in position within themain body 2. A tip assembly adapted for use in conjunction with amedicament container from which the medicaments are removed by a needlewherein the dispensing end of the container has a body portion fromwhich extends an outer sleeve having its inner surface threaded, and aninner sleeve also extending forwardly from said body, the inner sleevebeing positioned within and spaced from the outer sleeve, said innersleeve being tapered so as to enlarge in the direction ofthe body and incommunication with the medicament in the container, said tip assemblycomprising:

a cylindrical main body, said main body having an open forward end and apartially closed back end, the inner surface of the main body adjacentthe back end having circumferential sealing means extending inwardlytherefrom, said sealing means being adapted to sealingly engage theouter surface of the outer sleeve on the medicament container when thetip assembly is operatively connected to said container,

an inner cylindrical body within and coaxial with the main bodyforwardly of the sealing means, means connecting the inner body to themain body to retain the aforesaid spaced relation, the inner surface ofthe inner body being hexagonal in cross section,

a cap fitting over the open end of the main body, said cap having acup-shaped configuration including a bottom and a cylindrical wallextending therefrom, cooperating retaining means on the outer surface ofthe cap wall and the inner surface of the main body to hold the cap onthe main body,

a needle assembly carried within the main body by the inner body, saidneedle assembly comprising a hub member having an enlarged rear portionadapted to engage the threads on the inner surface of the outer sleeveof the container, a hexagonally shaped middle portion and a forwardportion of smaller diameter than the middle portion, the hub having ahole extending completely therethrough, a needle fixedly mounted in theforward portion of the hub, the rearward portion of the hub hole beingsized to conformingly engage the tapered inner sleeve of the container,the hexagonal portion of the hub being sized to operatively fit into thehexagonal inner surface of the inner body whereby the needle assembly isfirmly held in position within the main body, and

whereby when the tip assembly is operatively mounted on the dispensingend of the container all of the components of the tip assembly remain infixed position during use except for the cap which is removed to exposethe needle prior to use.

1. A tip assembly comprising: a cylindrical main body, said main bodyhaving an open forward end and a partially closed back end, the innersurface of the main body adjacent the back end having a pair of spacedannular sealing rings extending inwardly therefrom, an inner bodypositioned within the main body forwardly of the sealing rings, theouter surface of the inner body being equispaced from the inner surfaceof the main body, the inner surface of the inner body being hexagonal,means connecting the inner body to the main body and retaining same inthe aforesaid spaced relation, the forward end of the main body beingprovided with a retaining groove, a cap fitting over the open end of themain body, said cap having a cup-shaped configuration including a bottomand a cylindrical wall extending therefrom, holding means on the outersurface of the cap wall to engage the retaining groove in the main body,a plurality of spacing bars on the outer surface of the cap wallgenerally perpendicular to the cap bottom, the length of said spacingbars being such that they abut the forward edge of the main body whenthe cap is positioned on the main body and the holding means are seatedin the retaining groove, and a needle assembly carried within the mainbody by the inner body, said needle assembly comprising a hub memberhaving an enlarged rear portion, a hexagonally shaped middle portion anda forward portion having a cross section smaller than the middleportion, the hub having a hole extending completely therethrough, aneedle positioned in the forward portion of the hub and held therein bythe swaging of said hub portion into firm engagement with the needle,the hexagonal middle portion of the hub being sized to snugly fit intothe hexagonal inner surface of the inner body whereby the needleassembly is firmly held in position within the main body
 2. A tipassembly adapted for use in conjunction with a medicament container fromwhich the medicaments are removed by a needle wherein the dispensing endof the container has a body portion from which extends an outer sleevehaving its inner surface threaded, and an inner sleeve also extendingforwardly from said body, the inner sleeve being positioned within andspaced from the outer sleeve, said inner sleeve being tapered so as toenlarge in the direction of the body and in communication with themedicament in the container, said tip assembly comprising: a cylindricalmain body, said main body having an open forward end and a partiallyclosed back end, the inner surface of the main body adjacent the backend having circumferential sealing means extending inwardly therefrom,said sealing means being adapted to sealingly engage the outer surfaceof the outer sleeve on the medicament container when the tip assembly isoperatively connected to said container, an inner cylindrical bodywithin and coaxial with the main body forwardly of the sealing means,means connecting the inner body to the main body to retain the aforesaidspaced relation, the inner surface of the inner body being hexagonal incross section, a cap fitting over the open end of the main body, saidcap having a cup-shaped configuration including a bottom and acylindrical wall extending therefrom, cooperating retaining means on theouter surface of the cap waLl and the inner surface of the main body tohold the cap on the main body, a needle assembly carried within the mainbody by the inner body, said needle assembly comprising a hub memberhaving an enlarged rear portion adapted to engage the threads on theinner surface of the outer sleeve of the container, a hexagonally shapedmiddle portion and a forward portion of smaller diameter than the middleportion, the hub having a hole extending completely therethrough, aneedle fixedly mounted in the forward portion of the hub, the rearwardportion of the hub hole being sized to conformingly engage the taperedinner sleeve of the container, the hexagonal portion of the hub beingsized to operatively fit into the hexagonal inner surface of the innerbody whereby the needle assembly is firmly held in position within themain body, and whereby when the tip assembly is operatively mounted onthe dispensing end of the container all of the components of the tipassembly remain in fixed position during use except for the cap which isremoved to expose the needle prior to use.